The moment the door was pulled open, silence fell over the entire van.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLhnWG9KGOk
Darkness shrouded the figure at the entrance. No one dared to speak.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtfJcLaFAD3
The children shrank into their seats, frozen.
Then the ceiling light flicked on.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVz8dPuZ5wF
A soft yellow glow spilled down—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHMvXxwaeXn
And revealed a familiar face.
It was Miss Nora!
Her face was smudged with dust and sweat, her hair a little disheveled,7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJwOwxZbRGo
but she was still the same Miss Nora they knew.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB62lrBNzbk
One arm supported another teacher’s shoulder. Slowly, carefully, she laid the person down on the floor of the van.
That was when Finn couldn’t hold it in anymore.
He sprang from his seat like a coil releasing.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTq2q2vVbqZ
He didn’t care about his backpack, didn’t wait for permission.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrxllQtpjh2
He just ran forward.
“Miss Nora!”
Nora turned, and when she saw him, a real smile lit up her face.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaEYCrUcJX0
She opened her arms—and the moment Finn threw himself at her, she held him tight.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW7KFPnT6LD
His arms wrapped fiercely around her neck, and he buried his face in her shoulder.
Then he cried.
Not a quiet sob, but the kind of crying that comes after everything finally breaks loose—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG3NGfb8zGU
Shoulders shaking, breath ragged, crying from the depths of a little body that had been holding on too long.
The other kids, seeing this, seemed to realize they were finally allowed.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7uIjAlgo2T
One by one, they began to cry too. Some sniffled quietly, others wailed outright.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXO6MX3Gach
In seconds, the van became a tide of sorrow.
Nora held Finn like he was something unspeakably precious.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUxbXMqGGM0
She patted his back gently, murmured soft reassurances, calming him until he quieted down,7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtpW7ib64NJ
then helped him back to his seat.
She bent down, one by one, to stroke each child’s hair, whispering calming words,7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTlXwejlAo7
easing the tight little knots in their hearts.
A few minutes later, she stood up and clapped her hands.
“Alright, kids. Everyone in your seats.”7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVz8sQrQchG
Her voice was steady—strong.
“We’re going home.”
She walked to the driver’s seat.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJdqpm3sNPu
Under everyone’s watchful gaze, she sat down, buckled in, and glanced back at them with a smile.
“Driver Nora at your service,” she said with a playful wink.
“Wishing you all a perfect day.”
Then she closed the door, started the engine, turned the wheel—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrsdYg94sba
and slowly, the van rolled out of the darkness.
The children sat quietly,7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWTazw78qfh
watching as the lights of the city began to appear outside the window.
They were really going home.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy5etczvQ7B
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy0ahKK2htz
Nora drove fast through a pitch-black road, darkness thick as ink.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYDVgWhaFP4
There were no streetlights ahead. The world was silent.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6VPBDXLcYt
Only the stretch of road illuminated by her headlights moved with her—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyTK2RSNjgB
like she was slicing a narrow path through the night.
She gritted her teeth, fingers white on the wheel.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZaVxPTq2q6
The pain in her abdomen came earlier than expected.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT3lKpmy423
This wasn’t just soreness. It was a dull, deep throb—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2aIpSfcm11
pulsing outward from inside her, like a warning. Like a punishment.
Still, her grip on the steering wheel was steady.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxjUv1V3iV8
Her foot moved smoothly between gas and brake—no hesitation.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwxuX6POXXY
She couldn’t afford a mistake.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKyMLNZSP4
She couldn’t go too slow, either.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Yd5xdlajj
This wasn’t just about driving the kids home.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoPdvsfR1m5
This was her responsibility. The path she had chosen to bear.
The backseat gradually quieted.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxxbgP1FzPC
After the shock, drowsiness began to take over.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Zc33batMs
Little bodies leaned against the seats, lips still salty with tears.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGQIi8clNHr
A few began to murmur that they were hungry—it was dinner time, after all.
Nora glanced in the rearview mirror—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIwNE23dTRk
They were all there. Quiet. Safe.
She looked back at the road, calculating silently.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeLnJXohyDq
It would take about two more hours to reach the city.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7jLtDVNGGS
Assuming nothing happened in between... she could make it.
“Can’t stop,” she whispered to herself.
Her foot pressed down just a little harder on the gas.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4P7QxVSJH5
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoqrwnI9Mm8
Nora swore under her breath.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ95pDtLEcUa
Her vision blurred. Her head was spinning.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpZGQwOKhyB
She knew this wasn’t just fatigue—this was blood loss.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdtrGEVfol0
She forced herself to blink, tried to keep the road ahead in focus—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡixAyUVR4pl
but the white lines shimmered, floating like ripples in water.
If she kept driving, something bad would happen.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ86XNpGP2kQ
She was nearing her limit.
She eased off the gas, thinking fast:7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIid4UOyTJj
Could she use voice command to call for help?7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUw6r4FCr3D
No—if she spoke now, the kids would hear something was wrong.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzLWM0AVA0v
Maybe ask a nearby farmhouse? Too slow. Too risky.
The best scenario would be—
VROOOOM—
A motorcycle roared from the opposite direction.
Its headlight was blinding. A flash of black and red passed the corner of her vision.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVBNMRtTDqN
Both of them turned their heads at the same time.
In that moment, the world stopped.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJHx6UP29b0
Like a slow-motion scene in a movie, all sound was sucked away—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwbiAOuYr13
leaving only their eyes meeting.
Blue eyes met green.
Nora let out a breath, then gently pulled over to the side of the road.
Seconds later, a screech of brakes tore through the night.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9U1NP4wb7s
Tires skidded against the ground.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhcKbnV8E6H
Footsteps approached.
Knock knock—7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvEmDY1BONb
Someone tapped on the door.
Nora turned toward the backseat.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhyw6AtapaS
“Kids,” she said with a smile, “someone’s here to help us.”
“Let’s welcome him.”
The door opened.
Red Robin stepped into the van, his cape fluttering slightly in the night breeze.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWLgkbX8kuw
His blue eyes scanned a dozen wide-eyed children staring back at him.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd13gsYThnF
His expression froze awkwardly.
“Uh... hey there,” he said stiffly. “Hi, everyone.”
No one responded.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgXlFuuai0c
It was like seeing a movie character suddenly walk into the real world.
Nora reached out and tugged on his cape.
Tim froze. He turned to her.
It was the first time they’d spoken this closely since he’d broken into her house.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQcya7Xp7Pe
Back then, she’d looked at him coldly.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvw7W7ZymCt
Now, under the faint light, her face was pale.
“Lean down,” she whispered, her voice barely audible.
He obeyed, leaning closer.
Her breath was faint against his ear.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpkm8jTtTfE
“I’ve been shot. But the kids can’t know. You drive. Get them home.”
Tim’s pupils contracted.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp2krM0U9Br
In that instant, every ounce of logic in his mind snapped to full alert.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK2BafTXAPb
and then Add to home screen.